Archaeology approaches material artifacts of past human lives to teach us about social organization and cultural specificity, variety and change in small-scale, technologically simple societies as well as states, empires and nations. Archaeological knowledge contributes illuminating perspectives in contexts, including museum curation, Cultural Resource Management, conservation and other arenas where identity politics and representation, post-colonial relationships and ethical stewardship are at issue.

Biological Anthropology relies on fossil and genetic evidence of human biological evolution and the human capacity for culture, including language and other systems of communication. In primatology and evolutionary biology we find models of social life among our non-human ancestors, while studies of the relationship between human biology and culture shed light on human growth and development, variation and adaptation among humans in varied environments.

Sociocultural Anthropology provides explanations for cultural differences and similarities in contemporary populations, including language, economic organization, religion, political governance, values and art. Attention by cultural anthropologists to systems of stratification, including race, class and gender, enhances our understanding of culture as power, while examinations of human agency and its role in global-local changes reveal the power of culture as the attribute that distinguishes humans from all other animals. Theories and methods of sociocultural anthropology (including ethnography, which emphasizes immersive participant-observation as a key research strategy) are particularly critical, ethical and valuable in the investigation and solution of human problems.

Linguistic Anthropology studies the shape of linguistic diversity across populations and over time, examining the interplay between linguistic differentiation, cultural difference and socio-economic distinction. Many linguistic anthropologists draw from and contribute to cultural anthropological theory and practice, adding to this a detailed knowledge of semiotics, linguistic structure, language use and language ideologies. In addition to ethnography, linguistic anthropologists often record and transcribe speech in the context of social activities and provide an unparalleled viewpoint on how humans communicate and the significance of these communicative practices.